2 Timothy 3:16-4:4 - 28th Tuesday
after Pentecost

Be instant in season, out of season; reprove,
rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

Our age and “Political
Correctness” “described” by Saint Paul

2 Timothy 3:16-4:416 All scripture is given by inspiration of
God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly
furnished unto all good works. 1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the
Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and
his kingdom; 2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove,
rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3 For the time will come
when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they
heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away
their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.(28th Tuesday after
Pentecost)

We
should read the daily readings. It is easy to do, with a calendar and a bible,
or a computer program. I usually use the Menologion program (on my
laptop). I even have it on my Droid phone, in a marvelous calendar app. Whether
you do it “old school” by looking at a wall calendar or calendar
booklet and use a paper bible, or read on your PC using the Menologion program
or online, or read/listen on your Smart Phone, DO IT! If we read the
lectionary readings, we keep pace with the rhythm of the church, and the church
year does indeed have a rhythm, in which we are taught different things at
different times, depending on the season.

This
selection has something for everyone.

All scripture is given by inspiration of God,
and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness

All
of us must read scripture, and we see the purpose here: for“doctrine, reproof, correction, for
instruction in righteousness”. My flock
should note that I am not making things up when I repeat that “scripture
is *always* about you”! Of course, St Paul was most probably referring to
the OT scriptures, since the NT canon was being written, and his words apply
even more strongly to the Gospels and Epistles.

Perhaps one could construct a “Desert Island”
list of the most important Scripture for personal correction. Certainly
the Gospels would rank first, and also the Epistles, the Psalms, Proverbs,
Wisdom. All of these books should be read often.

If
you are not reading scripture daily, how do you expect to learn of God and get
better? This is the purpose of your life, and you will not fulfill it by
rushing about Christmas shopping or doing whatever else comes up (and things
WILL ALWAYS come up), and forgetting the “one thing needful”
– to learn of the one Who is meek and lowly and whose burden is light, by
sitting at His feet, with reading, prayer and desire.

Be instant in season, out of
season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and
doctrine.

This
scripture refers to all of us, but especially to the pastor. This is a
difficult command to fulfill to the letter, because our weak humanity gets in
the way. The “child Timothy”[1]
is being ordered (and we should remember that these instructions are not
optional – they ARE orders) to *always* be ready to do the work of a
pastor. Preaching “in season” is that which is done at the usual
times, when people are expecting or at least will tolerate a sermon, teaching,
a word of edification, etc – such as during the liturgy, in or after
services such as baptism, crowning, the blessing of a house, etc and, as I have
established a custom, between Vespers and matins at vigil).

We
*all* must be ready to give a word “out of season”. This is
when preaching and teaching is not convenient or easy, or perhaps, is
unlikely to be received in the spirit in which it is given. It is also when we
are tired, or vexed or distracted. This happens to a pastor a lot. Not
everybody that comes to church is living a spiritual, intense life. I have many
small encounters, often once in a lifetime opportunities to do something, say
something or BE something that will attract a person to God who is barely aware
of the real purpose of their life.

I had
one recently, and as they say, I am “kicking myself” because of it.
Sometimes people come to the church way after the service, just to light a
candle, and then leave. I was in the temple talking to someone, and several
people entered. They saw me, I saw them, and their body language was purposeful
– kiss the icon, light a candle and leave. I was in a conversation, and
it was important, but I could have talked to them. They showed no interest in
anything except their errand, and I have talked to many who have been running
this errand, and almost never does anything come of it, and I never see them
again. This could have been one of those times, but I will not know this,
because they did not approach me and I did not approach them. It may have been
a short conversation, not well understood by either party because of our
apparently different mother tongues, but I will most probably never know. This
is an example of preaching (which basically means just being there for people,
ready to fulfill their perceived and especially unperceived needs) out of
season.

There
are ALWAYS opportunities to teach, exhort, inspire, comfort out of season EVERY
DAY. You have them too. May God help us to see them, and not be like the people
of the Gergesenes, who missed their opportunity because of blindness,
distraction, and sinfulness.

For the time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to
themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears
from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

This time has come! Is
not our age being described?

Every possible
perversion of life is being accepted by supposed Christians.
“Politically Correct “ speech is tailored for those with
“itching ears”, and to the great shame of many Christians, they
have fallen for this speech. It is shocking how many supposed Christians are
pro-abortion, pro homosexual marriage, pro “living together because
everybody is doing it”, etc.

I became aware of a web
page[2]
today where a Greek priest is being criticized because he dared to tell a man
living in a sexually active homosexual relationship that he could not have
communion until he repented[3]
of his sin. That people actually consider the actions of this priest to be a
sin is beyond me. This is basic Christianity! Nowadays, we have people who have
web pages, blogs, Facebook pages that support their sinful way of life. Their
itching ears do not want to be told the truth, but rather, be told that they
can do what they want, and label it how they want. This is not Christianity.
There is no new sin under the sun – St Paul encountered these people too,
and wrote about them, but in our age, with the power of technology, the sinful
“excuse with excuses in sins”[4]
can be repeated billions of times to billions of people.

A time is coming when
men will go mad, and when they see someone who is not mad, they will attack
him, saying, "You are mad; you are not like us. St. Anthony the
Great

Abba Anthony said, "I
saw the snares the enemy spreads out over the world and I said groaning,
"What can escape from such snares?" Then I heard a voice saying to me,
"Humility." St. Anthony the Great, commemorated 17
January

[2]http://gotruthreform.org/gay-parishioner-denied-communion/
Here is the gist of these sodomy apologists: “The Editors of
gotruthreform.org website are compelled to write about an unfortunate matter
that has been reported to us. For the sake of brevity, we will not include a
long discussion of the Canon Laws regarding the facts. [translation:
Don’t confuse us with any stinking rules – we make up our own
rules based on how we feel and what we want!! (Fr S]

… Recent events at a Metropolis of Chicago Orthodox Parish in
question, concern a devoted Greek Orthodox Christian who is a doctor and the
spiritual son of a faith abiding priest. He has been an active parishioner
for several decades. He is also gay. The doctor would attend church almost
every Sunday and would frequently receive communion. Unfortunately, for the
doctor, his spiritual father recently “retired” due to a
disability. The doctor sought spiritual guidance from another Greek Orthodox
Priest in the Metropolis of Chicago. This new Spiritual Father, like the
prior one, did not bar him from taking communion; indeed, with proper
preparation, the Priest encouraged it. [Translation: Two priests trampled on
their oath to uphold the teachings of the Gospel, and this article is
praising them for this Fr S.]

… The new Priest called the doctor and engaged in a conversation with
a male person who answered the phone. The new Priest then spoke to the doctor
and posed numerous questions including asking who was the male person
answering the phone and whether the doctor was living with this man. Of
course, being an honest and forthcoming person, the doctor did not lie to
this new Priest. The new Priest told him he could no longer receive communion
at his Parish. One of the persons reporting the incident to us commented that
“his honesty of course was rewarded by condemnation”. [The doctor
was honest in reporting his behavior, but his behavior is fundamentally not
Christian. Any unrepeated of sin MUST be addressed by a priest! Fr S ]

This article goes on to do some “social engineering” which may
occur to have some pastoral merit, but actually, here we have an
example, by no means isolated of people who define Christianity in a
way foreign to the Gospel, but perfectly in keeping with the Political
Correctness of the Age. Truly we live in an age of insanity, and
“itching ears”!

[3]
“Repent” means to change one’s mind. It involves admitting
a sin, having sorrow for it, and desiring to change. A person who repents of
a sin may fall into it again and again. Competence in ceasing a sin is
therefore not a criterion to decide if a person has begun the process of
repentance, but surely refusing to admit that a sin is a sin, or trying to
stop the sinning is absolutely not repentance, and a priest has no choice for
a person who will not try to repent – he cannot give them communion.
Pro homosexual (activity) politically correct speech is absolutely not
repentance. A good pastor will help such a person in many ways, and refusal
to give communion is in no way any kind of abandonment. On the contrary, it
is the action of a pastor who is trying to encourage and teach.

[4]
Here is a good “rule of thumb” – If a person cannot
recognize the phrase “excuse with excuses and sins” and know what
service it occurs in, they are not competent to reject the moral and
theological positions of Orthodox Christianity, but should be humble and
realize how little they know about Christianity. Such people would benefit by
choosing to learn instead of teach. This is part of a Psalm said at every
Vespers service.